ALYSSA TELANDER, eSQ.
She, her
Alyssa Telander is a graduate of Northeastern University School of Law. Before opening ACT Immigration Law, Alyssa worked for the Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network (RMIAN) and Kolko & Casey, P.C., an immigration law firm, in Colorado. Prior to relocating to Colorado, Alyssa represented people in immigration detention in upstate New York through the New York Immigrant Family Unity Project (NYIFUP).
During law school, Alyssa clerked with the Buffalo Immigration Court and interned with the Southern Poverty Law Center, the National Immigration Project of the National Lawyer’s Guild, a non-profit legal service provider in New York, a public defender’s office in New York, a solo immigration practitioner in Boston, and a private immigration firm in Boston. She also volunteered with Kids in Need of Defense (KIND) in Boston.
Prior to law school, Alyssa spent several years working on the U.S. - Mexico border, including at the Texas Civil Rights Project, Diocesan Migrant and Refugee Services in El Paso, Texas, and the ACLU of New Mexico, Regional Center for Border Rights.
Alyssa’s passion for immigration law began in 2008, when U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raided a meat-packing plant in Postville, Iowa, the largest workplace immigration raid in U.S. history at the time. Postville is a thirty minute drive from Luther College, where Alyssa was studying, and she became involved in the relief efforts for families torn apart by the raid. After witnessing the devastation caused by the Postville raid, Alyssa knew she wanted to dedicate her career to fighting for immigrant rights. After working as a community organizer on the U.S. - Mexico border for several years, Alyssa decided to go to law school to gain access to an additional tool to advocate for immigrant families.
Alyssa believes that the law is only one tool for making change, among many. Alyssa enjoys collaborating with community organizers, policy advocates, social workers, medical professionals, interpreters, translators, and others who serve immigrants and advocate for immigrant rights.
Alyssa lives with her husband and two dogs. In her free time, she loves camping and hiking and exploring all of the beautiful outdoor spaces Colorado has to offer.
Languages
English
Spanish
Areas of Practice
Immigration - 100%
Bar Admissions
New York, 2018
Professional Associations
American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA)
AILA Colorado Asylum Committee Co- Chair, 2021 - Present
American Bar Association
Colorado Bar Association
Education
Northeastern University School of Law, Juris Doctor, 2017
Luther College, B.A., 2010